Monday, October 20, 2014

I have just received the first fresh Chanterelle Mushrooms of the season. Not that we have a season here in Maldives, nor do we have wild mushrooms, everything is flown in. But still, it is autumn in Europe so the mushroom season has started.

Today I show you more an Amuse, a teaser, than a full portion, but of course you can just make a full portion and serve it as a main course. I served it in Just Veg, our pure vegetarian restaurant.

I have mixed the mushrooms a little with White Shimeji mushrooms, they are very tender and soft in flavor, going well with the other ingredients.

Parsnip is of course one of my favorite vegetables, it is simply delicious. It is actually very close to carrots and Parsley, just the flavor of it is absolutely tremendous. I cook it this time as a puree, but one can easily roast it in the oven or use it like any other root vegetable.

Method
Peel the parsnip, put in a pot and add water till it is nearly covered. Salt slightly
simmer till nearly soft
Add cream, again till the parsnip is nearly covered
Simmer till parsnip is very soft
Blend in a Thermomix, till very fine
Put through a sieve, season if necessary

Clean the mushrooms nicely, wash them just before using them, never wash them too early
Heat the butter till slightly noisette
Add the finely cut shallots
Saute the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper

Friday, October 10, 2014

Again I have taken a fabulous idea from Australian Gourmet Traveler and have implemented it here with us as an a la carte breakfast. The Fried Egg Dosa with Potato Curry. Dosa is a traditional Indian pan cake, completely gluten free which is great. The flour is actually made with rice and lentils which originally get soaked over night and then ground to a paste. Yogurt is added and then it get "fermented over night in the fridge.

Sounds like a lot of work? Yes you are right it is But luckily we live in a time of convenience products and you can buy a Dosa Premix in most good Indian Grocers. Then you just follow the instruction on the packet....hopefully there is an English translation....

The curry is a very simple curry and on top of that a dry curry, so there is no sauce. But it is delicious and fills your tummy.

I usually just fry the Dosa, do my eggs on the side, then top the finished Dosa with the eggs and potato curry, generously sprinkle with freshly grated Coconut and then put a lot of fresh Coriander on top and Voila, you got a great and different Breakfast.

Do I just eat it for Breakfast? No, for sure not. I can eat the Dosa anytime of the day, but that is just because I like it at any time of the day.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

You are absolutely right, I am on a complete Breakfast trip, but then I have to admit, I love Breakfast (and Lunch, and Dinner, and all the nibbles between the meals). But at the moment I am totally into Breakfast.

This Breakfast is very much with an Asian touch, the sauce served is with black bean sauce, chicken stock and then the omelet is topped with pickled cucumbers and soy bean. I haven't added any chili as I am not too much into spiciness, but if you like, just add some red chilies, it will not just look great but taste great too.

The breakfast is very easy to do, the stock can be prepared in advance and to make it easier, you can just cook the shiitake mushrooms in the stock and then pour over the omelet.

The asparagus needs to be quickly blanched, but make sure it is still nice and crisp when serving. I like to use as well white asparagus, it is just different and really, really nice.

The cucumbers are marinated a la minute, basically do them at the beginning, then make a cup of coffee, then prepare the recipe. By the time you want to serve the omelet, the cucumbers will be marinated to perfection

Of course you can always take this recipe and use it for a light lunch or even dinner, it is easily prepared and I usually keep the stock in small bags in the freezer, so it is always available

Method
Peel the cucumber and cut in thin long strips
Mix vinegar and sugar
Add cucumbers and marinate for 15 minutes

Cut ginger and chili in julienne
heat oil and toss ginger and chili quickly
Add blackbeans, stir for another minute
Add all th other ingredients and bring to the boil

Blanch the aspargus
Heat oil and toss sliced shiitake mushrooms
Add eggs and stir quickly to form and omelette
When half cooked add some asparagus in the middle
Finish the cooking gently
Roll the omelette
Plate the omelette in a deep plate
Pour some broth on it
Garnish with pickled cucumabers and bean sprouts

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Something different for Breakfast, Scallops and Chorizo, something that actually goes really well together. And yes it goes really well for breakfast or a brunch.

Is it my idea? No it is not so I can't take credit for this brilliant combination. I saw it in the Australian Gourmet Traveller, a magazine that I love since many years and have found a lot of inspiration, so here it is, the credit goes to Australian Gourmet Traveler.......thank you very much

This dish is part of the new Breakfast menu, and it is already one of the favorite dishes I am happy that it sells well. The breakfast is a lot busier than expected, I thought the guests would still prefer to go to the buffet where we have a huge choice of food, but no, our guests in the pool villas seem to enjoy the tranquility of having breakfast up at Sunset Restaurant

So without further ado, here is the recipe

Recipe
1 kg Sour Dough Bread
75 ml (3 oz) EV Olive Oil

20 ea Eggs
50 ml (2 oz) Oil
50 ml (2 oz) Butter

400 g (14 oz) Scallops
200 g (7 oz) Chorizo dried

100 g (3.5 oz) Coriander
Maldon Salt
Pepper black

Method
Cut the bread in 1.5 cm thick slices and toast on both
sides in olive oil

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Trust me, here in the Maldives we are absolutely rocking. We just opened our new Restaurant Outlet, Marrakesh, now just 2 weeks later we are starting a new a la carte Breakfast outlet. We decided that the guests of our Pool Suites should have something special, after all the Pool Suites cost nearly double of a normal suite. So we decided to have something like an Executive Lounge just for them.

Here one can have Breakfast in tranquility, sitting outside beside the pool, everything is possible. The best thing is, one does not have to go and choose the goods from the buffet, no, here the buffet comes to the table. Fruit, Cheese, smoked fishes and Pastries are served family style, then the hot breakfast is a la carte.

The first Breakfast is a delicious Potato, Leek and Gruyere Tart with a poached Egg and Garden Greens. Simply delicious and relatively easy to prepare.

The Gruyere Tart can actually be made in advance and can be frozen, then you just defrost the Tart and bake it up again.

Of course you can as well use this dish for a lunch or a brunch..... anything is possible. I always think of Asia where there is no continental Breakfast as we know it, yes there are breakfast dishes, but not like we have in the Western World

Method
Mix all ingredients for the dough quickly
Keep in the fridge at least 2 hours, best overnight
before using
Roll the dough 3 mm thick, cut round discs and put in
Individual quiche forms, punch holes with a fork and freeze
Bake at 180 C straight from the freezer till half baked

Cut the leeks in small cubes
Cut the onions in brunoise
Chop the garlic finely
Peel the potatoes and boil till soft
Saute the vegetables in butter, add potatoes
Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg

Beat egg, milk and cream till well mixed
Season withsalt and pepper

Put the vegetables in the quiches, pour Royale on top
Bake in the oven at 180 C till golden brown and baked

Bring the water and vinegar to a boil
Take the pan off the heat
Give the water a swirl and add one egg at the time
Poach to your desired cooking temperature

Plate the tart, put the poached egg on top
Cut the carrots and asparagus in fine slivers
Plate the salad next to the tart and drizzle with oil and vinegar